Ohio National Guard News
Conference brings together,
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Soldiers with the Ohio National Guard post the colors during the national anthem. |
Lt. Col. Ann-Maria Coghlin, commander of the 178th Mission Support Group, Ohio Air National Guard, addresses the audience. |
Amanda Wirtz (right), a Navy combat veteran and motivational speaker, embraces Dorothy Wolfe, a veteran of the Marines and the Air Force. |
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Army Reserve veteran Megan Grudzinski (left), a Cleveland native, visits a vendor booth during the Ohio Women Veterans Conference with her service dog, Harley. |
Women veterans sign a banner at the Ohio Women Veterans Conference. |
Navy veterans were among the 500 attendees at the Ohio Department of Veterans Services Women Veterans Conference. |
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Air Force veterans were among the 500 attendees at the Ohio Department of Veterans Services Women Veterans Conference. |
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (09-12-15) — Hundreds of women pour into the narrow hallway from the hotel lobby. Some are using canes and wheelchairs to make their way through the crowded space, while others, barely in their 20s, almost skip down the aisles. Some wear high heels and business attire, while others favor jeans and sneakers. They stop and talk to the vendors at the booths set up along the walls, as well as each other. Their voices and laughter soon fill the hallway as strangers are introduced and old friends are reunited. Although they all seem to come from different backgrounds and generations, they share not only smiles and laughter, but also one unifying experience. They are all veterans. More than 500 female veterans attended the Ohio Department of Veterans Services Women Veterans Conference Sept. 12, 2015, at the Hilton Columbus at Easton. “It’s great to see all these female veterans, walking in I felt so energized and proud,” said Megan Grudzinski, an Army veteran and Cleveland native. One of the largest women’s veterans conferences in the country, the event brings women vets together from all over the state of Ohio and provides information on benefits, resources, employment and networking opportunities for attendees. The Ohio National Guard, Ohio Department of Veterans Services (DVS) Advisory Committee on Women Veterans and the Chalmers P. Wylie Veterans Affairs Ambulatory Care Center supported the biennial event this year. “A lot of female veterans, just like male veterans, are unaware of what benefits and resources are available to them, and we want to get the word out and let them know we appreciate their service,” said Karen Kish, the women veterans program coordinator for the Ohio DVS. This is especially important in a state like Ohio, which has a population of more than 67,000 female veterans, and is home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, one of the largest Air Force installations in the country, she said. The event included an all-female color guard from the Ohio Army National Guard and several keynote speakers including Lt. Col. Ann-Maria Coghlin, commander of the Ohio Air National Guard’s 178th Mission Support Group, and Dr. Betty Moseley Brown, associate director of the VA’s Center for Women Veterans. Women from all eras and services who attended the event gained not only information about benefits and opportunities available to them, but were also recognized for their service and the sacrifices they’ve made for their nation. Depending on the era these women served, this conference may mark the first time that some have even considered themselves veterans, Kish said. “The hardest part about being a female veteran is a lack of acknowledgement over the years,” said Mary Holiway, an Army veteran and a Cleveland native. Kish, a veteran herself who retired from the Ohio Army National Guard in 2003, is well aware of not only the challenges female veterans face, but also that their struggle may go unseen. “The first thing out of some of these women’s mouths is ‘Oh, I didn’t serve overseas’ or ‘I didn’t know I was a vet,’ and that’s something that needs to be addressed,” Kish said. “Many women are so modest and humble about their service, that they are unaware of the benefits that are available to them, and they also need to receive the recognition they deserve,” she added. This is a thought echoed by Moseley Brown, herself a Marine Corps veteran. “We want to raise awareness to treat all women with dignity and respect,” she said. The conference also addressed legislative policy, which included the announcement of a new female veteran license plate that would be available for purchase from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles sometime later this year. While attendees gained important information regarding their benefits, many veterans feel they gained something even more valuable from the conference. “When I returned from Afghanistan, I felt so isolated, I didn’t have any female support, none of my friends were veterans, and my Reserve unit was in Illinois,” Grudzinski said. “I had no one to share my experiences with or talk to.” Grudzinski, who suffered from PTSD after her deployment, attended the event with the aid of her service dog, Harley. |
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